Dr. John Lee often talks about
estrogen dominance, in fact, he even coined the phrase, but not too
many women really know what it is or what causes it.
Simply put, estrogen
dominance is when your progesterone levels drop but your estrogen levels
don’t, or your doctor prescribes estrogen replacement therapy only
if you are already low on progesterone, causing an imbalance in your
body.
This syndrome is
still somewhat new so research is still underway, but it’s thought
that estrogen dominance happens most often in these cases:
Estrogen
Replacement Therapy
Pre-menopause
Birth
Control pills
Hysterectomy
Post-menopause
Low
fiber diet
When
ovaries don’t make enough progesterone
In
diets high in fats and sugars
But just because
you may fit into one of those categories doesn’t necessarily mean you
have estrogen dominance syndrome. To be sure you can always request
a saliva test from your doctor to check your hormone levels.
Dr. Ronald Hoffman
believes that certain diseases and problems, such as weight gain, fibrocystic
breast disease, irregular and heavy menstrual bleeding, endometriosis,
ovarian cysts, and menstrual migraines might be traced back to excess
estrogen or too little progesterone.
But there are many
natural ways to get your body and hormones back in balance and get
back to ‘happier’ you!
Try adding fiber
to your diet or supplementing with amino acids (such as lecithin, l-taurine,
and l-methioine). You can eat some tofu or bean curd, or supplement
with Soy Isoflavone (which acts as a phytoestrogen).
The best way to balance
your estrogen and progesterone level is to add Progesterone to your
hormone therapy by either a progesterone cream or take a supplement
with natural progesterone or pregnenolone in it. Stay clear of Wild
Yam creams and pills if they have not already been converted to progesterone
in a lab – your body can’t absorb wild yam any other way.
But before you rush out and grab that tofu turkey or down a gallon of amino
acids – be sure your symptoms are from estrogen dominance and not some
other hidden problem. Not every woman suffers from estrogen dominance –
do your research first!!